There is a lack of retained firefighters in south Leicestershire

The Leics town's station is manned by retained crews, who are called out for each shout from work or home.

Station officer Steve Reed said the stress on businesses means they cannot let workers off during office hours.

Harborough's high level of commuters means many residents do not work there and cannot help out in the daytime.

Mr Reed said it is a particular problem as the town and surrounding rural area relies on a purely retained service. The nearest Leics fire station with full-time day cover is in Wigston.

Part-time firefighters

He told BBC Radio Leicester the pressures on small businesses in Harborough mean many firms simply cannot afford to release their staff in office hours.

The Leicestershire Chamber of Commerce and Industry says it would be happy to work with the service to try to come up with a solution to the problem.

Leics Fire and Rescue Service has four full-time manned stations, all in Leicester, with another five in the larger towns having a mix of day crews with retained crews at night.

There are 10 stations - including Harborough and nearby Kibworth and Lutterworth - which are totally reliant on retained crews.